Good morning everyone! Non-combatants won the voting, so here I am kicking off the new contest. Good luck.

The inside of the hive ship pulsed gently, a dull thrumming audible through the mucous-covered walls. Strange shapes and growths covered the inside of the room; soft luminescent fungi, honey-comb shaped networks of veins, and protective sheets of carapace. Termagants squeezed and skittered through tight sphincters as they headed on their way to different assigned tasks. The tightly bound cyst marking the end of a teleporter worm shook violently and split open revealing a brood of scataphagoids. The small beetle-shaped creatures immediately started to scuttle along every surface of the organ-room, using their multi-faceted jaws to clean and pick up detritis and tumors.

In another liquid-filled room delicate jellyfish creatures drifted through the acrid fluid picking small particulates out of the water column with their grasping tendrils. Multi-segmented tapeworms attached themselves to the walls, stealing vital nutrients from the living vessel. From inside the dark orfices of brood nests multiple legs protruded, pulling out a large spider-like symbiote. This creature systematically catalogued the room, any parasites, or non-native organisms present immediately skewered by a sharp proboscis and injected with a highly potent concoction of digestive fluids and phage cells, only to be sucked up and transferred by a tranport symbiote to another area of the ship.

Purpose:

The purpose behind this competition is to model or paint models that could represents non-combatant organisms in a Tyranid swarm.

But first, I’ll expalin what a non-combatant is a little better. A non-combatant is an organism that would normally fill a role in a Hive Fleet that is not suited for combat (regardless that all Tyranids can fight if need be). Examples of organisms that fit this description are very common, specifically in the older fluff from second edition. Some of these are:

Teleporter WormsScataphagoid BeetlesShroud SpinnersMind Slavers

You could also use examples of more contemporary species including the Narvhal and ammunition-species for thorax swarms. Or you could just make up some sort of creature of your own design.

Keep in mind the models you make can be used for anything, strategems, objectives, markers, terrain, Battle Fleet Gothic, or even a special unit or display addition to your army.

There will be a single gallery for this contest opened in the Survival of the Fittest album. To enter, Private Message me here with links to your entry and I will create a sub-album titled with “Entries Name – Your Username” in the appropriate folder, where I will upload the photos manually. This will allow members to post multiple angles and shots of your creation.

1) Models must be either scratch-built or kit-bashes of official Forge World/Games-Workshop models.2) Submissions must be complete.3) Submissions do not have to painted (but they can be).4) When photographing your submissions please make sure they’re on a light background with a good light source.5) A short paragraph or two of fluff must accompany your entry. This can explain your organisms function or role in a hive fleet, or just expand the existing fluff.

Prizes:

This month, the winner of the contest will win a BRAND NEW TRYGON KIT. Brought to use by the friendly people at Heavy Support Games; Canada's premier hobby discounter, offering thousands of products for tabletop war games, trading card games, board games, role playing games, books and collectibles.

Rules:

1) Only one submission may be entered per contest. Any submissions that are entered may not be retracted in favour of another submission.2) Submissions must be completed to the full guidelines of the contest to be considered for voting.3) Each member gets one vote per poll, and the vote may not be changed once cast.4) You may vote for your own entry if you wish (voting is anonymous).5) When voting we ask you to consider the appeal of the painting or modeling of the piece and the overall composition.6) Polling topics are reserved for questions and comments regarding the polls, discussion of models entered in the competition should be reserved for their respective topics (do not be afraid to make a W.I.P. thread).7) Polls will be run for the stated amount of time. No additional votes will be considered after that date has passed.

Thanks Pinky. I hope you do enter, I'd really like to see what you come up with

Also, I forgot to add the fluff thing, so that has been added as a 5th guidline in the main post.

All entries must be submitted with a small bit of fluff, so that other contestants and members will be able to get a clearer picture of your creation. Just PM me the fluff when you are submitting the photos, and I'll add it your creatures album.

Fair enough - I was hoping to dig into some old designs and turn up some tentacles.

The old background mentions several times that terrestrial tyranids have very simplistic digestive systems. So I am thinking of a bloated feeder beast. Kind of a rear echelon (not that nids think in those term) refuelling tanker carting concentrated nutrients.

Either that or a gaunt with a whetstone for sharpening rending claws.

_________________"I know you may find the Tyranids physically repellent to look at but believe you me, you don't want to let them out of your sight." Hojan Storall Technomagos of the Adeptus Mechanicus

god i wish i had a camera right now... ive already been thinking of ideas for a narvhal to go with the rest of my bioship fleet. my local GW gave rave reviews of my hive ship and other bioship designs...

god i wish i had a camera right now... ive already been thinking of ideas for a narvhal to go with the rest of my bioship fleet. my local GW gave rave reviews of my hive ship and other bioship designs...

I'm afraid I'll have to sit this competition out. I'll be sanding and painting doors and walls, and laying floors instead, as I just signed the papers for my own house to rent! Which also mean my norn queen and I are moving in together!

I've got some interseting ideas floating around. I can't wait but to make it. But if this creation is a non-combatant, is it possible to use it in a game, besides from using claws and teeth rule?

Well, it depends on how you make it. A birthing-beast that lives only as a broodmother might make an excellent tervigon, and somethign that's made to dig underground and extract delicious minerals could serve as a ravener.Or, of course, you could just use it as an objective marker. I know my playgroup LOVES fancy objectives, and I once won a special prize of one asskicking (to be redeemed at a later date) for using an unpainted Signum on an unflocked base as one of mine in a big game

_________________Disclaimer: This member is extremely fallable. Conclusive tests result in a 77-82% idiocy rating. Handle with derision.

Well, it depends on how you make it. A birthing-beast that lives only as a broodmother might make an excellent tervigon, and somethign that's made to dig underground and extract delicious minerals could serve as a ravener.Or, of course, you could just use it as an objective marker.

Exactly! Another good example would be some sort of tunnelling transport worm, that could be used as a Mycetic Spore in-game.